Have you ever asked a job applicant how old they are? If you have, you might be breaking the law. A leading Singapore employment lawyer looks at which interview questions could land you in hot water.

Earlier this week, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey announced plans to lay off eight per cent of his workforce – or 336 employees – but the social-media kingpin insisted it would be done “with the utmost respect for each and every person”.

Software engineer, Bart Teeuwisse, disagrees – he woke up the same morning Dorsey made the announcement, checked his phone and learned that he’d been laid off via an iOS notification.

Ironically, the former employee took to Twitter to share his experience:

Sometimes, mass lay-offs are inevitable and while there’s no easy way to tell an employee that they’re facing redundancies, there are some things that can soften the blow – or at least show a little respect.

Employees’ personal needs should always be a top priority – not only because of ethics, but because of maintaining your company’s reputation, says kglobal partner, Gene Grabowski.

“The first rule of conducting a layoff properly is to be honest and transparent,” he told HRD. “Try to keep advanced news of the layoff non-existent, but if you fail at that and you’re conducted by employees or the media, be honest and say something like ‘all options for managing the company’s current situation are on the table, just as they always are’.”

Grabowski said that this approach should continue until the official announcement is made to staff, at which point the organisation shouldn’t try to shift any blame.

He explained that while it may be tempting to place the blame elsewhere, accountability will secure the highest possible trust and loyalty with employees and existing stakeholders.